Study of Refinement of Groundwaters of Viral Contaminants Using Clay Column in a Laboratory Model

Groundwater and aquifers are the major sources of drinking water in Iran. Water pollution prevention plays a key role in the public health. They have the potential to become contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms from wastewater and leaking sewage pipes. The transport of viruses in absorbent media as a filter has been a subject of great interest in recent years. We studied the transport of rotavirus, used as surrogate pathogenic viruses, through the clay mixed with three various alkaline solutions; Sodium hydroxide, calcium carbonate and aluminum hydroxide. TCID50 method (50% Tissue Culture Infective Dose) was used for Virus titration the electrical conductivity and pH parameters were also investigated. The experimental data were fitted with a transport model to determine the adsorption parameters. Using soil filters at a given time and under certain chemical conditions significantly reduced titration of viruses. At alkaline pH and higher ionic strength, rotavirus was retained significantly by attachment to the solid–water interfaces due to electrostatic interactions. A high initial removal can be ascribed to Calcareous clay column. To conclude, pH and ionic strength seem to be the major factors determining attachment of the virus to the soil grains. It is recommended to use Calcareous clay column to improve wells for reducing pathogenic viruses in water.